Pluviophile (n.) a lover of rain; someone who finds joy and peace of mind on rainy days


AN~~ this chapter contains mentions of family death and depression, so if either of those topics triggers you at all, please don't carry on reading. My last intention with this story is to cause anybody serious distress, so I just wanted to give you a heads up (:


For the next few days, Makoto didn't have work, and was able to concentrate purely on college and getting Love in the Time of Cholera finished. When Saturday came, it brought an oasis of calm, Makoto safe in the knowledge he'd finished his reading assignment and didn't have work until the next day. Although he couldn't stop replaying his and Haru's conversation in his mind, overanalysing everything they'd said to each other, he appreciated having a day alone to clear his mind a little, a day when he could read and think and listen to the rain hitting his window.

With Love in the Time of Cholera finished, Makoto decided to read a different Márquez book; completely unrelated, obviously, to the one he now knew was Haru's favourite.

Cracking open One Hundred Years of Solitude, Makoto thought back over Haru's obvious nervousness the day before and wondered if he was simply shy, or there was some other reason for him being so quiet, unable to maintain eye contact with Makoto. There was something about Haru's shyness that Makoto found endearing, and kind of adorable.

But then again, Haru had clearly been uncomfortable, and Makoto hated the thought of making anybody feel like that. And on top of that, Rin seemed pretty protective of Haru, never leaving his side unless he had to use the bathroom, and even making his orders for him. A lump formed in Makoto's throat when he considered the closeness of Haru and Rin's relationship, and he frowned, trying to discard the thought. He hadn't seen that much actual interaction between the two, and they definitely didn't act like a couple.

Althought it wasn't as if Makoto had any experience of couples, or being in a relationship.

Sighing and unable to focus, he put the book down and closed his eyes, letting the sound of the storm outside wash over him and clear his mind.

He hadn't known someone like Haru before, who he felt inexplicably drawn to, and he wasn't sure what it meant. Of course he'd had crushes before but this felt different. When you can't think about somebody without it feeling like your internal organs are crashing into each other, he reasoned, they're probably something different.

Halfway across town, in the bakery, Nagisa was on shift with another college student, a quieter girl named Hana. Because of the rainstorm, it had been a quiet day so far, and Nagisa leaned on the counter for a while, basking in the silence. Hana was washing up in the kitchen, and their last customer had left a few minutes ago, leaving the bakery blissfully empty. Despite his extrovertedness, Nagisa liked a little quiet every now and then.

Since Makoto's last shift three days ago, Rin had been in every day, and the two boys had had a few conversations, giving Nagisa a chance to get to know him better. Haru hadn't been in, but Nagisa had noticed his shyness, and presumed that was the reason why he hadn't seen him.

He looked up when the bell over the door chimed, and smiled when he saw Rin and Haru entering. As usual, Rin was a few steps in front of Haru, and walking with his usual self-assured swagger. He knew the two boys' names after an impressively red-faced Makoto had recounted to him, in great detail, the time Rin had introduced himself. The way Makoto had reacted – shiny-eyed and rambling and slightly giggly – had reminded Nagisa of a puppy. A puppy who towered over Nagisa, but still a puppy.

"Rin-chan!" beamed Nagisa. "Double espresso, a latte and a sugar cookie?"

"Yeah," replied Rin, and Nagisa noticed he was lacking his usual verve. "Haru, do you want to go sit down? I'll bring your drink over,"

Silently, Haru nodded and walked over to their usual table, a tucked-away one in the corner.

Rin rested his elbows on the counter and leaned across to Nagisa. "Hey," he said, glancing at the blond's name tag. "Nagisa."

Nagisa looked up from the coffee machine, and slid across the floor to Rin. "Are you alright, Rin-chan?" he asked.

"Haru's had a really rough few days. I was kind of hoping Makoto would be here, because Haru seems to like him, but really he just needs something to cheer him up." Rin's expression was concerned and uncharacteristically serious, and Nagisa wondered if there was something serious going on.

"Has something happened to Haru-chan?" he asked, forgetting about the coffees.

Rin frowned, and broke eye contact with Nagisa for a moment. "Look, you can't go shoot your mouth off and tell anybody this, but Haru hasn't had it easy in a long time. He lost his mom when he was fourteen, and got really down for a really long time. Some scary stuff was going on in his mind, I guess."

"Is he..." Nagisa's troubled expression matched Rin's, and he thought carefully about what he was going to say. Figuring Rin was a straight-to-the-point person, he decided to just outright ask. "Does Haru-chan have depression?"

"For a while now, I'm guessing. He wasn't great when we met. And on top of that, he's got bad social anxiety too, and he's really introverted. Hates meeting new people, crowded places, that kind of thing. That's why I'm so surprised he likes Makoto so much."

Nagisa nodded understandingly. "He'll be here tomorrow. His shift starts at nine."

"Thanks," replied Rin. "Look, to be honest, I'm worried about Makoto. I don't want him to get Haru's hopes up. That kind of thing's happened before, people leaving Haru behind because of..." he trailed off.

"Don't worry," Nagisa said, smiling reassuringly. "Mako-chan's not that kind of guy. He's really understanding and kind, and I know for a fact that he really likes Haru-chan."

Rin laughed at that. "They've barely spoken ten words to each other!" he chuckled.

Nagisa laughed as well. "Makoto doesn't need a big conversation to know when he likes somebody," he explained, "and he definitely likes Haru-chan."

Looking slightly reassured, Rin glanced over at Haru and smiled at him, hoping that Nagisa wasn't lying. Because even though Haru hadn't let on quite how much he liked Makoto, and despite his friend's stoic exterior, Rin could tell that Haru was in pretty deep.


So this was a very difficult chapter to write, but I promise lots of Reigisa fluff in the next chapter to make up for it :)

as always, comments are very appreciated and the feedback I've recieved so far means a lot to me~~